As New Hampshire’s ratepayer advocate, I generally avoid public comment on controversies related to public utilities in neighboring states. But certain legal developments recently reported by Valley News staff writer John Lippman (“Ruling Shields VTel From Scrutiny,” Jan. 13) are alarming — and common to both states.
Utilities like Green Mountain Power and Liberty Utilities are subject to plenary oversight by state regulators, which means the companies must file lots of information with those regulators. Once filed, these documents become subject to disclosure under each state’s public records law.
Vermont’s public records law and New Hampshire’s right-to-know law each contain a disclosure exemption for (among other things) trade secrets. This exemption allows but does not require the agency to withhold from public scrutiny information that might cause its source to suffer competitive harm.
What competitive harm could possibly befall a company that is regulated because it enjoys a legal monopoly? Very little, of course.
Last year, the winner of a $560 million Megabucks jackpot was able to sue the New Hampshire Lottery Commission under the right-to-know law and force the agency to keep her name private. Now, as Lippman has reported, some Vermont utilities have likewise successfully invoked the Vermont’s public records law against the Department of Public Service as to the companies’ annual financial reports.
Each case should have been thrown out of court for failure to plead a valid cause of action. Public records laws are disclosure statutes, not privacy statutes. This principle is long established under the statutes’ federal counterpart, the Freedom of Information Act.
Utility regulation, like democracy itself, thrives in sunshine. The legislatures of both New Hampshire and Vermont should clarify their respective public records laws so that they cannot be misused in this fashion.
D. Maurice Kreis
Hartland and Concord, N.H.
The writer is New Hampshire’s consumer advocate.
VtDigger and the Valley News recently reported that Secretary of Education Dan French led a state design team that reimagined Vermont education as a single district with four regional superintendents and boards (“Vt. Weighs Sole School District: Memo Details Act 46 Reform,” Jan. 12). The restructuring would place the majority of decision-making power in significantly fewer hands across the state. The outlets reported Gov. Phil Scott as saying, “We will need to redesign an education delivery system not just make incremental adjustments.”
Metaphors are powerful tools. Using “delivery system” as a metaphor to discuss meaningful educational change indicates a deep and significant shortcoming of Scott’s thinking related to improving education and social services. “Delivery system” is an uninspiring metaphor for reimagining 21st century education. It takes us back to the industrial efficiency models of the early 20th century.
Scott and French would do well to create a more inclusive group of thinkers in their efforts. They should pay attention to metaphors that spark excitement and relate to values that are inherent in the process of excellent education.
Kofi Annan, former secretary general of the United Nations, used more powerful language to discuss education when he said, “Education is a human right with immense power to transform. On its foundation rest the cornerstones of freedom, democracy and sustainable human development.” These values should drive policy related to education and other social services. Let the secretary of transportation focus on delivery systems.
Keri Gelenian
Fairlee
The writer is head of schools at the Rivendell Interstate School District.
Randall Balmer’s Perspectives column “An Upper Valley Wish List for 2019” (Jan. 6) included a call for more bike lanes. Any community can use more bicycle lanes and recreation paths, especially to connect those already in place. The Hanover Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee hopes his wish comes true.
We are working to make walking and biking safer, smarter and more attractive. Dartmouth College and Hanover are exploring connected multi-use paths on campus and through the town. What do you want to connect and what is the best way to do it? We welcome constructive ideas from community members and students. To learn more, visit www.hanovernh.org/bike-pedestrian-committee.
Bill Young
Hanover
On Jan. 8, I read a wonderful Forum letter submitted by 10-year-old Andy MacNeil. He expressed his concern over the continued inclusion of Doonesbury in the Sunday comics section, as the strip often contains “inappropriate” subject matter and rude dialogue (“Move ‘Doonesbury’ Out of the Comics”). Though I recently have begun to appreciate the political humor the Sunday Doonesbury strips sometimes contain, I completely agree with Andy that it does not belong in the section most frequently perused by the youngest readers of the Valley News.
A few years ago, I submitted a letter concerning a similar problem: the presence of, and occasional emphasis on, explicitly “adult” situations in Annie’s Mailbox, which during the week is adjacent to the comics. Since then I have noticed a welcome decrease in the number of Annie’s Mailbox headlines and letters containing references to such situations, which has been a great relief, especially when presented with written proof that children do indeed enjoy the Valley News.
Andy suggested moving Doonesbury to a different location on Sundays. I believe that both Doonesbury and it’s fellow “political comic” Mallard Fillmore would find a much more appropriate home among the political cartoons (which I have noticed are allotted quite a bit of space in the Sunday edition). To fill the space Doonesbury and Mallard Fillmore would vacate, I recommend previous favorites like For Better or For Worse, B.C., or even Calvin and Hobbes.
Rosie Johnson, 17
Lebanon